Council bosses have begun reviewing the impact of parking charges in Royal Victoria Park.

In June, in a move to stop the area being used for free all-day parking and to improve the park's look, charges were introduced by Bath and North East Somerset Council.

Now people who visit the park have to pay £1 an hour and can only stay for up to two or four hours, depending where they park.

Business owners have claimed customers have been put off by the charges, and an e-petition has been launched asking for the council to reverse its decision.

Joe Cussens, who owns the Marlborough Tavern, and has been visited by council officials as part of the review, said: "My hope is that they give people two hours' free parking and after that people either have to leave or they have to pay.

"That way people can just drop in."

The council, which will reveal its review findings in March, is looking at the impact on residential streets, as motorists look for alternative free parking, the effect on nearby traders, and the environmental benefits to the park.

13 comments

A great deal of taxpayer's money has been spent on all this pay and display equipment, but because parking has been overpriced, very few now use it. This means that people are parking elsewhere, probably in the park and rides, which we are now having to pay to extend. The answer is surely to reduce prices so that is fairly well used by those who need to park there, e.g. parents for the playgrounds, tourists to see the Royal crescent and the botanical gardens, etc and that the taxpayer can get a fair income on the investment. A two hour limit in any one day would prevent commuters from clogging it up. A £1 charge for the two hours would seem to me to be a fair price, and would hopefully produce an occupancy rate of 70 - 80% I.e. easy to find somewhere to park but still raising a good sum for the council.
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A great deal of taxpayer's money has been spent on all this pay and display equipment, but because parking has been overpriced, very few now use it. This means that people are parking elsewhere, probably in the park and rides, which we are now having to pay to extend. I agree that the area reserved for cyclists is regularly abused by motorists. Often I have stopped at the correct line in one lane for another driver to cruise past me in the next lane to stop at the front line, deliberately breaking the law, as though they would get there any quicker. Wrong and discourteous though this is, "aggressive" is not an appropriate description, geoffone1, I believe; overtaking too close to a cyclist (or horse rider) on the other hand is dangerous, even life threatening. The assault by this cyclist is appalling. But it does demonstrate the real tensions between cyclists and motorists. The motorist risks his licence, the cyclist all too often his life. Both groups need to properly consider the other. Cyclists also regularly abuse the road system, going through red lights, not being well lit at night, weaving in heavy traffic, riding on pavements and endangering pedestrians, etc. and are largely unaccountable, without licence, insurance or ID. If the latter issues were addressed, lives would be saved and we could all get on better together.The answer is surely to reduce prices so that is fairly well used by those who need to park there, e.g. parents for the playgrounds, tourists to see the Royal crescent and the botanical gardens, etc and that the taxpayer can get a fair income on the investment. A two hour limit in any one day would prevent commuters from clogging it up. A £1 charge for the two hours would seem to me to be a fair price, and would hopefully produce an occupancy rate of 70 - 80% I.e. easy to find somewhere to park but still raising a good sum for the council.

Lucky Jonas who has the pleasure of walking in the park. Some of us cannot walk far and the park and ride does not help many with scooters/wheelchairs. Parents with autistic children may need swift access to their cars, as may others who need access to medical equipment. Total bans are discriminatory.

I trhink to sort all the problems out the park should be redeveloped into a council housing estate, with an accompanying new shool, small business park and a Tescos..and a small carpark if space permits!

Under no circumstances should free parking return to Victoria Park or Alexandra Park for that matter, which is swamped by selfish commuters. The people complaining are those used to free parking over the years, to the detriment of everyone else. These people can also be described as selfish and uncaring to the needs of other Park users.